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Archive des Actualités des Partenaires

February 2022

27 Feb

Ninth Session of the Plenary of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES-9) – IISD

The ninth session of the Plenary of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES-9) will consider the thematic assessment of the sustainable use of wild species, and the methodological assessment regarding the diverse conceptualization of multiple values of nature and its benefits, including biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services.

27 Feb

UN Multi-stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the SDGs (STI Forum) 2022 – IISD

The seventh annual UN Multi-stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals (STI Forum) will take place in May 2022, during the 2022 session of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).

26 Feb

Wetlands: An effective but undervalued climate solution – GREEN CLIMATE FUND

When asked to think about natural carbon sinks, what’s the first image that comes to mind? Forests, right? Although their role is hugely significant, the less thought of wetlands are equally, and in many cases, more effective carbon sinks. Coastal wetlands such as mangroves store carbon up to 55 times faster than tropical rainforests. Peatlands, which cover about three per cent of the planet’s land surface, sequester approximately 30 per cent of all land-based carbon – that’s twice the amount than all of the world’s forests combined. Yet, wetlands, from marshes to swamps to coral reefs, are disappearing three times faster than forests.

25 Feb

The Growing Urgency of Funding Off-Grid Solar: Exploring the Multi-Billion Dollar Investment Opportunity in Achieving Climate and Energy Access Goals - NEXTBILLION

In the last decade, the off-grid solar industry has become a key solution to quickly deliver clean energy access to low-income and hard-to-reach communities. It currently serves 420 million people and has helped mitigate over 150 million metric tonnes of CO2e (according to GOGLA estimates), while enabling remote and vulnerable populations to adapt and become more resilient to climate change.

25 Feb

Boost governance in Peru’s secondary forests to enhance landscape restoration - FORESTS NEWS - CIFOR

Assessing the value of secondary forests in Peru is vital for designing policies that recognize the benefits they contribute to sustainable ecosystem management efforts and restoring tree cover in a cost-effective manner, while including livelihood benefits and climate mitigation. Defined as natural forest regrowth after clearance, secondary forests are estimated to make up 13.3 percent of forest cover in the Peruvian Amazon. They provide 63 percent of forest cover in Southeast Asia, and 34 percent across the lowland Neotropics.

25 Feb

New research details complexity of growing risks to endangered pangolins - FORESTS NEWS - CIFOR

A dietary delicacy in some countries in Africa and Asia, the pangolin is also prized for its scales, which are used in folk and traditional remedies to treat various ailments. Although pangolins are protected by international laws under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES), estimates indicate that more than a million pangolins have been illegally trafficked worldwide since 2013.

25 Feb

To save the shea tree, scientists explore predictive breeding tools - FORESTS NEWS – CIFOR

Better known outside Africa for shea butter, which is used in chocolate manufacturing, cuisine and cosmetics, the shea (Vitellaria paradoxa) is an evergreen flowering tree found across the African continent, from Senegal in the west to the foothills of the Ethiopian highlands in the east.Scientists like Prasad Hendre from the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF) and Iago Hale from the University of New Hampshire in the United States have now settled on a solution that may save the tree that also provides millions of households with a highly nutritious cooking oil, as well as a vital source of income, with its supply chain almost entirely controlled by women.

25 Feb

Scientific Symposium: From Arctic to Antarctic – IISD

Polar regions attract increasing public interest and attention with respect to climate change, mainly because of the visible effects. Climate-induced changes, such as ice melting, are regularly reported in the media, sometimes accompanied by important information on the significance of the frozen world for the global climate and human socioeconomic development. Environmental changes in the Arctic and the Antarctic are accelerating, affecting local species and ecosystems, and impacting the broader climate and ecological systems far beyond the polar regions.

25 Feb

Highlights and images of main proceedings for 22 February 2022 – IISD

On Tuesday, 22 February 2022, negotiations began in earnest on important yet delicate issues, engendering lengthy debates which lasted long into the night. Delegates met throughout the day in two informal working groups to address four different clusters of issues.

25 Feb

Highlights and images of main proceedings for 22 February 2022 – IISD

The approval plenary for the Summary for Policymakers (SPM) of the Working Group II (WGII) contribution to the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) continued throughout Tuesday, with delegates gathering in plenary and contact group sessions.

25 Feb

Summary report, 19–20 February 2022 – IISD

Over 400 youth-led or youth-serving organizations make up the UN MGCY, a dedicated space for children and youth in the UN to address issues ranging from the environment and human rights to peace and security. Those MGCY organizations that share a focus on the environment and sustainable development can receive UNEP accreditation and engage through the MGCY to UNEP.

23 Feb

6th European Union - African Union Summit: A Joint Vision for 2030 - European Union

We, the Heads of State and Government of the Member States of the African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU) met on 17–18 February 2022 under the Co-Chairpersonship of H.E. Mr. Charles Michel, President of the European Council and H.E. Mr. Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal and Chairperson of the African Union. We recall the 5th AU-EU Summit held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire on 29-30 November 2017 and the 2nd AU-EU Foreign Affairs Ministerial Meeting held in Kigali, Rwanda, on 25-26 October 2021.

23 Feb

A High Ambition Coalition on Biodiversity beyond National Jurisdiction Protecting the Ocean: Time for Action - European Union - African Union

The Ocean is of vital importance to current and future generations. There is only one Ocean. Every State, every economic player, every community of people and every individual has a responsibility to conserve it and to use it sustainably. We, Heads of State and Government and the European Union, are deeply concerned about the continued degradation of the Ocean from human activities escalating the devastating effects of the climate change and biodiversity crises.

21 Feb

High-Level UN Conference to Support the Implementation of SDG 14 (Second UN Ocean Conference) – IISD

The second UN Ocean Conference was originally scheduled to take place from 2-6 June 2020, in Lisbon, Portugal, but was postponed in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, until “public health conditions allow” in 2022. On 9 September 2021, the UNGA decided that the Conference will take place in Lisbon, Portugal, from 27 June to 1 July 2022. It is co-hosted by Kenya and Portugal. The UNGA mandated the appointment of co-facilitators to lead intergovernmental consultations on the Conference declaration and finalize the organizational arrangements no later than May 2022.

21 Feb

Status of FSC and PEFC/PAFC certifications in the Congo Basin – ATIBT

Caroline Duhesme, secretary of the ATIBT Certification Commission, monitors the evolution of certification in recent years. She presents the trends and perspectives of FSC and PEFC/PAFC certification in the Congo Basin. Forest certification developed late and with difficulty in Africa, particularly in Central Africa. The first FSC certificates were issued in 2005 (after an unsuccessful attempt in 1996).

21 Feb

The story of an encounter between man and elephant – ATIBT

In this story published on the initiative of ATIBT, Nicolas Bayol tells an impressive encounter with an elephant, 20 years ago in Gabon. February 8, 2022, my second birthday: it's been 20 years since an elephant attacked and injured me. I take this opportunity to publish a completed version of the story of this adventure.

18 Feb

26th Session of the FAO Committee on Forestry (COFO 26) – IISD

The 26th Session of the FAO Committee on Forestry (COFO 26) is scheduled to take place 3-7 October 2022 in Rome, Italy.

18 Feb

XV World Forestry Congress – IISD

The XV World Forestry Congress aims to provide an opportunity for the global forestry community to consider the state and future of world forestry, particularly in the context of the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, while striving to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. It will be held on the theme, “Building a Green, Healthy and Resilient Future with Forests.”

16 Feb

ECOSOC Forum on Financing for Development Follow-up (FfD Forum) 2022 – IISD

The 2022 session of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Forum on Financing for Development Follow-up, also known as the FfD Forum, will take place in April 2022.

12 Feb

UN Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP 15) (Part 2) – IISD

This Conference comprises the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 15) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the tenth Meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (Cartagena Protocol COP/MOP 10), and the fourth Meeting of the Parties to the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-sharing (Nagoya Protocol COP/MOP 4).

06 Feb

Decease of Franck Bisiaux - ATIBT

ATIBT expresses its deepest condolences to his family and friends. Franck Bisiaux did not need any other diploma than his agricultural BTS to lead a brilliant career for more than 20 years in West and Central Africa.

06 Feb

Gabon has doubled its wood production in 10 years - ATIBT

According to an article in Le Nouveau Gabon, wood production has doubled in the last 10 years to reach 3.7 million m3 in 2021. Over the past nine years, timber production has doubled in Gabon. According to data from the French Treasury, it has risen from 1.9 million m3 in 2012 to nearly 3.7 million in 2021.

06 Feb

How to stop illegal logging by identifying the origin of the wood? - ATIBT

A visit from World Forest ID to the ATIBT gave us an insight into this interesting approach. Tackling global deforestation and degradation requires that the actors involved in global supply chains have the means to accurately verify the identity and geographic source of both timber and deforestation-related agricultural commodities.

06 Feb

Results of the training of the actors of the forestry-wood sector in Gabon - ATIBT

The first trainings of the actors of the sector for the year 2022 took place in Gabon from January 12 to 28 with the full satisfaction of the beneficiaries and the government authorities. The two training sessions aimed at providing forestry and wood industry actors with the capacity to better understand the upcoming forestry resource exploitation contexts ended in Gabon on January 28.

06 Feb

Presentation of the AFD EU FLEGT Program - ATIBT

In December 2021, the consortium formed by Eticwood and Nature+, both members of ATIBT, was selected for the Technical Coordination of the AFD EU FLEGT Program. Presentation of the Program. This program focuses on eight priority countries (Cameroon, Congo, Ghana, Guyana, Honduras, Liberia, Central African Republic and Vietnam) and will last for a period of 4 years (2022-2025). The main objective of the Program is to contribute to sustainable forest management, with 3 sub-objectives: operationalization of the VPA, capacity building of civil society organizations, and support to the private sector in the implementation of the VPA.

05 Feb

World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2022 – IISD

The World Day for Safety and Health at Work is celebrated annually on 28 April to promote the prevention of occupational accidents and diseases globally. It is an awareness-raising campaign intended to focus international attention on the magnitude of the problem and on how promoting and creating a safety and health culture can help reduce the number of work-related deaths and injuries.

04 Feb

EU enforcement is overdue: Destruction of Romania’s Natura 2000 primary and old-growth forests continues - FERN

In a tersely worded reasoned opinion – the step prior to a court referral – the European Commission gave Romania just one month to start implementing EU laws to stop illegal logging and the continued destruction of Romania’s Natura 2000 sites. That was in July 2020. This bold stance has seemingly been followed by not much at all, a delay remarkable enough to warrant an MEP question, in March 2021, as to why progress in the infringement procedure was so limited. And still nothing.

04 Feb

Will a malfunctioning satellite spell trouble for forests? - FERN

These days, Brazil is not the first country most people would go to for lessons on stopping deforestation and violations of Indigenous Peoples’ rights, but it has perhaps the most impressive deforestation-monitoring system in the world. In December 2021, Fern released a new report looking at what a proposed EU deforestation observatory could learn from Brazil. Just days after its release, Copernicus Sentinel-1B, a very important satellite for observing deforestation, went dark.

04 Feb

Is the EU poised to improve public financing of forest management? - FERN

Will the EU finally get its forest management incentives right? Today, a great deal of EU public financial support goes to bioenergy production (about €10 billion per year for woody biomass), causing additional logging and harming the climate, nature and forests’ role as a carbon sink. By comparison, public funding for improving forest biodiversity is rarely used and, sadly, a recent EU Court of Auditors found it had little impact on shifting the curve of carbon and biodiversity loss. 

04 Feb

EU Africa Summit: Time for a Greener, Fairer Deal with Africa - FERN

The Summit between EU and African Union leaders – postponed from October 2020 to 17 - 18 February 2022 because of COVID-19 – is deemed by EU institutions to be a chance to recreate the bloc’s “partnership” with Africa. But civil society organisations (CSOs) worry that the ongoing dialogue between the EU and Africa will promote business as usual over tackling the unfolding climate and environmental crisis.

04 Feb

Indigenous organisations tell European policy makers to respect their land rights, or new anti-deforestation legislation is likely to fail - FERN

Community leaders of 22 Indigenous organisations from 33 countries have said that the European Union’s landmark anti-deforestation law is likely to fail unless businesses are required to respect land rights. For this, relevant international law and standards provide a more reliable standard of compliance than un-harmonised producer-country rules.

04 Feb

Official handover of equipment to combat COVID-19 in the vicinity of Burundi’s national and transboundary protected areas

On 14 December 2021, H.E. Dr. Déo-Guide RUREMA, Minister of Environment, Agriculture and Livestock of Burundi, presided over the official handover ceremony of COVID-19 control equipment to Health Centres located in the vicinity of the national and transboundary protected areas, to COMIFAC National Coordination of Burundi and to civil society organisations.

04 Feb

Covid-19 pandemic control – Support to the fight against Covid-19 pandemic in the vicinity of SENA-URA National Park in Chad

On 20 October 2021, a ceremony was held in Ndjamena, Chad, to handover health equipment to strengthen the technical platform for the care and preservation of COVID-19 in the surrounding areas of SENA-OURA border park. COMIFAC, supported by the German Technical Cooperation through GIZ Regional Support Project for COMIFAC, has through this action affirmed its willingness to accompany member states in their conservation efforts.